As I mentioned in my last blog, my stepson and his Brazilian fiancée were recently married in our home. I catered for the reception for forty people and everything was gluten-free.
I am lucky (or unlucky!) enough to have a kitchen with sufficient bench space to lay out forty dinner plates, so serving up the entree and main courses was pretty straightforward. The key is to be very well prepared. And prepared I was.
Our entrée was a warm duck breast salad with roasted beetroot, walnuts, witlof and rocket drizzled with a magnificent, aged balsamic vinegar which was a gift to me from the mother of the bride. The duck breasts were marinated overnight, quickly browned in a pan, skin-sides down, and placed on baking trays, which went into the oven as the guests were having drinks. The duck was cooked till pink, then left to rest for half an hour before being sliced and served.
I’d baked the beetroot off during the week and dressed it with extra virgin olive oil and aged balsamic vinegar. Tossed in olive oil and sea salt flakes the walnuts were also roasted during the week. The rocket had been washed and spun dry the day before and the dressing was whipped together on the morning of the wedding.
With all the elements ready, a friend and I quickly put them together on the production line of dinner plates.
Rosie
WARM SALAD OF DUCK WITH BEETROOT, WALNUTS AND ROCKET
Serves 40
14 duck breasts, skin on
140 ml Tamari or gluten-free soy sauce
100 gm caster sugar
140 ml mirin
200 gm ginger, peeled and finely grated using a ginger grater
4-5 bunches baby beetroot
600 gm baby rocket, washed and spun dry
400 gm walnuts
5-6 heads witlof, leaves separated
Extra virgin olive oil
Aged balsamic vinegar
Sea salt flakes
Freshly ground black pepper
Preheat oven to 150°C.
Make slashes across the skin of the duck being careful not to cut into the flesh. Mix Tamari, caster sugar, mirin, ginger and miso together and pour over the duck. Marinate for 4 hours or overnight.
Wrap a couple of beetroot at a time in foil and bake for around one hour or until the beetroot are cooked through. Allow to cool enough to handle and slip the skins off. Discard skins and cut each beetroot into eighths. Dress with olive oil, balsamic vinegar and salt and pepper to taste. Store in the fridge if you are not going to use them within 24 hours. Will keep in the fridge for two weeks.
Toss walnuts in olive oil and sea salt flakes and place on a baking tray, in one layer. Roast for 10-15 minutes or until the walnuts have coloured slightly. Allow to cool. Store in an airtight container in the fridge if you are not going to use them within 2 days. Will keep in the fridge for over two weeks.
Preheat oven to 200°C. Line baking trays with non stick baking paper.
Work in batches, or several frying pans, to brown the duck. Bring a large heavy based frying pan to medium heat and fry the duck, skin side down, along with the marinade, circulating the duck, until the marinade has become caramelised and the duck skin is golden brown. Place duck only, skin side up, on the prepared oven trays. When ready to cook, bake for 8 minutes. Allow to rest for 4 minutes.
To serve: Place two witlof leaves on each plate. Dress the baby rocket with extra virgin olive oil and aged balsamic vinegar. Season with salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper and place in the centre of each plate. Scatter beetroot wedges and walnuts around the rocket. Slice the duck breasts and divide the warm slices among the plates placing them on top of the rocket. Drizzle a little aged balsamic vinegar over the duck.